By E. Marcel Pourtout, Editor
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We have an interesting weekend of mixed martial arts with two of the biggest promotions in the sport holding events on “free” television which means non-pay-per view broadcasting. Bellator returns Friday from its break with a show on Spike with a new set of contenders and leader as former Strikeforce president Scott Coker has taken over the reigns. This will be his first official event in charge of Bellator.
The UFC is returning to Fox on broadcast television Saturday with an above-average card that will provide clarity in several divisions. Here’s what to look forward to:
-We’re going to get a number one contender for the UFC welterweight title after Saturday. Matt Brown and Robbie Lawler battle in the main event with the winner most likely getting a title shot against current champion Johny Hendricks.
Brown had a rough stretch from March 2010 to November 2011, losing four of five fights and potential elimination from the promotion all together. However, the Ohio native has been on a tear, winning his last seven fights, six of which have come by knockout or TKO. As we’ve learned over the years, the best way to impress Zuffa and elevate your place in the promotion is to finish fights and Brown has done that with regularity. In his last fight, Brown finished off Erick Silva with a TKO in the third round back in May. Another impressive victory like that would garner a title shot.
He’ll have to get past Lawler who has revived his career in the most improbable fashion I’ve ever seen in MMA. Lawler is only 32 but has 34 fights on his resume. My first memory of Lawler was back in Elite XC defeating Mirilo Rua back in September 2007. He was already six years into his career and had a seven-fight run in the UFC. Lawler has fought for ICON, Strikeforce, IFL, King of the Cage and other promotions but has never looked better than now.
Lawler is gunning for his second shot at Hendricks after losing a close decision to the champion back in March. I had the fight three rounds to two in favor of Hendricks but a solid case could be made that Lawler won that contest. Lawler recovered from the tough loss in fine fashion with a third-round TKO of Jake Ellenberger in May.
Lawler’s technical evolution as a striker has been remarkable and makes him the favorite of this contest. Brown does have an advantage in the clinch but not overtly. If Lawler keeps his distance and controls Browns’ grappling attacks, he should win this fight in the third or fourth round.
-Is Anthony “Rumble” Johnson ready for prime time in the light heavyweight division? If you made a list of the top-ten physically gifted fighters in all of MMA, it would be tough to deny a spot to Johnson. Rumble is another MMA veteran similar to Lawler and Brown, fighting since 2006. Johnson had difficulty making the weight cut for years which reached its low moment in January 2012 when he failed to make weight by 11 pounds in a middleweight bout against Vitor Belfort. To make matters worse, Johnson lost the fight anyway and was released from the UFC.
What has followed is a seven-fight winning streak including a triumphant return to the UFC with a decisive decision victory over Phil Davis at UFC 172 in April. It was one of the most dominant decision victories you’ll ever see. With champion Jon Jones now facing Daniel Cormier for the strap and Alex Gustafsson mending an injured knee, Rumble may be one win away from a title shot.
In his way stands Antonio “Little Nog” Nogueira who at one time was one of the elite strikers in all of MMA but has slowed down drastically over the years and shouldn’t put much resistance against an aggressive Johnson.
-Which UFC fight will steal the show? There’s some potential “Fight of the Year” candidates on the card. Clay Guida vs. Dennis Bermudez looks like an exciting paced lightweight fight on paper. San Jose hero Josh Thompson get to fight on his home turf against rising star Bobby Green in another lightweight clash. Those two battles have the chance to be special bouts talked about positively the rest of the year.
-What can we expect from Bellator in the Coker era? While the promotion looks like its building up its September card, Bellator 123, as its rebranding launch with well known fighter like Pat Curran, Mo Lawal, Cheick Kongo and Bobby Lashley in that event, Friday’s Bellator 122 does offer some intrigue.
First, it marks the probable end of the “tournament format” dominating the promotion. While tournaments won’t completely disappear from Bellator (Coker isn’t averse to them as seen in Strikeforce with a heavyweight tournament that actually launched Daniel Cormier’s career upward), expect more of Bellator 123 in the future.
As for Bellator 122, we get a middleweight tournament final between Brett Cooper and Brandon Halsey. Another tournament final will take place in the welterweight division with Andrey Koreshkov battling Adam Mcdonough. We even get to see old stalwarts Phil Baroni and Karo Parisyan going against each other. While none of those are groundbreaking bouts, its still a platform for the promotion to continue building towards a new future with Coker.
The Sports Inquirer 
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